Question:
Answer:
When you’ve sinned against another person, you need to make some attempt to let them know you’re sorry and ask their forgiveness. Here we speak of “the satisfaction” a penitent must make (CCC 1459-60).
Given the circumstances, the offended person may not want to talk with you in person. So, if you can’t repent in person, you can opt for a phone call, letter, email or text in humbly letting a person know how sorry you are and that you ask their forgiveness. If there’s a matter of financial restitution too, you can begin to address that. You may also seek a mutual friend to help foster reconciliation.
In any event, seeking reconciliation with a person against whom we have sinned is part of the process of repentance. Perhaps the person isn’t ready to reconcile. However, if you’ve expressed your contrition to that person, you can move forward knowing you’ve done the right thing and have planted a seed for the eventual restoration of your friendship/relationship.
In addition, as you noted, you should also confess this sin in Confession. Depending on what took place, it could be a venial sin or it could be a mortal sin. Just give your priest confessor the basic details and receive God merciful absolution (see Jn.14:27). And then strive to avoid such sin in the future.
For more on this issue, see CCC 1450-70.